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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Franklin K. Lane, Secretary 



United States Geological Survey 

George Otis Smith, Director 

WATER-SUPPLY Paper 425— E 



GROUND WATER IK QUINCY VALLEY 

. WASHmGTON 

BY 

A. T. SCHWENNESEN and 0. E. MEINZER 



Contributions to the hydrology of the United States, 1917 
(Pages 131-161) 

Published December 30, 191S 





WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

1918 



^onogruph 




Class GB -LOJ^ 
Book ' W^- d 3 



/ 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Franklin K. Lane, Secretary 



United States Geological Survey. 

George Otis Smith, Director 




Water-Supply Paper 425— E 



GROUND WATER IN QUINOY VALLEY 

WASHINGTON 



BY 



A. T. SCHWENNESEN and O. E. MEINZER 



Contributions to the hydrology of the United States, 1917 
( Pages 131-161) 

Published December 30, 1918 




WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 
1918 



s of -. 

^i 2i 1919 



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CONTENTS. 

Page. 

Introduction 131 

Location and area 131 

Scope of investigation 131 

Acknowledgments 134 

Topography : , 134 

Topographic features of central Washington 134 

Topographic features of the region around Quincy Valley 135 

Surface of the basin 136 

Elevation 136 

Drainage 136 

Features produced by wind 137 

Features produced by streams. 138 

Climate 138 

Soil and vegetation 139 

Geology 141 

General features 141 

Yakima basalt 142 

Lake beds 143 

Character and distribution 143 

Origin and age 143 

Glacial outwash 144 

Distribution and character 144 

Origin and age 144 

Wind-blown deposits 145 

Water table 145 

Depth to water 145 

Form of the water table 146 

Water-bearing formations 147 

Water in basalt 147 

Water in lake beds 151 

Water in glacial-outwash deposits 151 

Quality of water. '. 155 

Pumping plants and irrigation j, 156 

Pumping from wells 156 

Pumping from Moses Lake 157 

Cost of pumping 157 

Summary and conclusions 157 

III 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Page. 
Plate XIII, Map of Quincy Valley, Wash., and adjacent areas, showing con- 
tours of the water table and areas contributing water to the 

valley 1 134 

XIV. Geologic section across Quincy Valley, Wash 140 

Figure 5. Map of Washington showing location of Quincy Valley and other 
areas described in water-supply papers of the United States 
Geological Survey relating to ground water 132 

6. Generalized columnar section of geologic formations in Quincy 

Valley, Wash. 141 

7. Diagram showing movements and disposal of surface and ground 

water in the Moses Lake region of Quincy Valley, Wash 153 

IV 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASHINGTON. 



By A. T. ScHWENNESEN and O. E. Meinzer. 



INTRODUCTION. 

LOCATION AND AREA. 

Quincy Valley is in Grant County, Wash., a little south and east 
of the center of the State (fig. 5). The lowland to which the term 
Quincy Valley is locally applied is not, however, a true valley in the 
usual sense of that word, for it is nearly as broad as it is long and is 
more appropriately called a basin. This basin is bounded on the 
north by the Badger Hills, on the south by the Frenchman Hills, on 
the west by Babcock Ridge and other low swells along the brink of 
the Columbia River gorge, and on the east by the high land east of 
Moses Lake. Its area is approximately 600 square miles. 

The northern part of the basin is crossed by the transcontinental 
line of the Great Northern Railway; the eastern part is reached by 
branch lines of the Northern Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul railways; and the region south of the Frenchman Hills is 
traversed by the main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul 
Railway, which can be reached without difficulty from the southern 
part of the basin by crossing the Frenchman Hills. 

The principal towns in the basin are Ephrata and Quincy, both in 
its northern part, on the Great Northern Railway. Neppel is at the 
terminus of the branch line of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul 
Railway. 

SCOPE OF INVESTIGATION. 

For many years stockmen along Crab Creek have used the water 
from the stream to irrigate wild grass on the adjacent bottom lands, 
but within the last few years water has been pumped for irrigation 
in certain parts of the valley. Near Moses Lake some tracts are 
irrigated with water pumped from the lake but in other parts of 
the basin the water is pumped from wells. Most of the irrigated 
lands are in apple orchard, but a great variety of other crops, in- 
cluding alfalfa, corn, melons, vegetables, and small fruits, are raised 
by irrigation for home consumption and for the local market. 

131 



132 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 19l1. 

Repeated advances in the price of fuel for internal-combustion 
engines during the last few years has greatly increased the cost of 
irrigation. The burden has been especially heavy on irrigators who 
must pump the water from great depths and who are irrigating 




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young orchards that are not yet bearing. In some orchards the 
trees have suffered through lack of water because of the inability 
of the owners to pay the fuel bills. 

From time to time various projects for supplying the basin with 
water for irrigation have been considered. In 1909 Mr. Joseph 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 133 

Jacobs made an investigation for the Quincy Valley Water Users' 
Association to discover the most practicable and economical source 
of water. In his report,^ which was published by the Washington 
Geological Survey, Wenatchee River and Wenatchee Lake were con- 
sidered the most feasible sources, and plans were made for a gravity 
system thus supplied, providing for the irrigation of 435,000 acres 
in Quincy Valley and in the region to the south, between the French- 
man Hills and Saddle Mountain. The estimated cost of the project 
was $43,700,000, or approximately $100 an acre. No means have yet 
been found for financing the project. 

The residents of the basin have long looked to the near-by Col- 
umbia as a possible source of cheap electric power that could be used 
for pumping. It is pointed out that the rapids of the river afford 
power sites, that these rapids are now serious obstacles to naviga- 
tion, and that in connection with the construction of works at the 
rapids to make them navigable provision could be made, at a pro- 
portionately small charge, for utilizing their power. 

In 1909 and 1911 Army engineers made surveys of the Columbia 
from the mouth of Snake River to Wenatchee to determine the 
feasibility of such a combined project^ but reported adversely on 
it, for the reason that the present and prospective commerce on the 
Columbia would not warrant the expenditure of that proportion of 
the total cost which would have to be charged against improvement of 
navigation. In view of the small amount of commerce to be bene- 
fited, it was concluded that the development of power should be 
considered the primary object and that the needs of navigation 
could be considered only incidentally. 

If the project is considered solely as a means of obtaining power, 
the question at once arises whether the demand for power is suffi- 
cient to justify the undertaking. Neither the Federal Government 
nor private capitalists will undertake extensive power developments 
without the assurance of an adequate and certain market for the 
power. Irrigators in Quincy Valley recognize many advantages of 
electric power over power generated by internal-combustion en- 
gines, and if electric power had the additional advantage of cheap- 
ness it would doubtless almost completely replace that furnished by 
internal-combustion engines. The number of pumping plants and 
the resulting market for power will be determined by several fac- 
tors, including topography, soil, and depth to water, but perhaps 
chiefly by the quantity of ground water obtainable. The importance 
of an adequate supply of ground water was recognized by the resi- 

iLandes, Henry, Mangum, A. W., Benson, H. K., Saunders, E. J., and Jacobs, Joseph, 
A preliminary report on the Quincy Valley irrigation projects : Washington Geol. Survey 
Bull. 14, 1912. 

2Kutz, C. W., 62d Cong., 2d sess., H. Doc. 693. 



134 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

dents of the basin and it was the fundamental reason for their re- 
quest for the investigation on which this report is based. 

The material for the present report was collected by A. T. Schwen- 
uesen, who spent about two and one-half months in the field in the 
fall of 1916. During two weeks of this time Mr. Schwennesen was 
accompanied by O. E. Meinzer, and together they made a recon- 
naissance of the region adjacent to the basin. The report was 
written chiefly by Mr. Schwennesen, but Mr. Meinzer collaborated 
jn certain parts. F. F. Henshaw, also of the Geological Survey, 
furnished valuable data and estimates on stream flow and evapora- 
tion in the region from 1910 to 1913, inclusive. The present prelim- 
inary report on the region will be followed by a full report contain- 
ing the detailed data and maps. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

The authors gratefully acknowledge the unfailing courtesy and 
willingness with which residents of the basin complied with requests 
for information, and are under obligations to the drillers for assist- 
ance in collecting well records. Special thanks are due Mr. Louis 
Mullerleile, of Quincy, who placed at the disposal of the Survey a 
large amount of. material that he had collected relating to wells in 
the region. 

TOPOGRAPHY. 

TOPOGRAPHIC FEATURES OF CENTRAL WASHINGTON. 

Quincy Valley is a part of the Walla Walla Plateau, which is the 
northern section of the Columbia Plateau province. The Walla 
Walla Plateau extends from the Cascade Mountains eastward to the 
Coeur d'Alene and Bitter root mountains, and from the Colville 
Mountains and Okanogan highlands southward to the Blue Moun- 
tains in Oregon and Idaho, and to the basins of the Harney section in 
south-central Oregon. It consists essentially of great expanses of 
nearly level or gentlj^ sloping ground, interrupted by hills and by deep 
trenchlike valleys. 

In general its surface conforms to the structure of the underlying 
basalt, being nearly level where the beds of basalt lie nearly hori- 
zontal, forming ridges where these beds have been upwarped into 
anticlines, and forming broad valleys where they have been down- 
warped into synclines. The canyons, locally laiown as coulees, are 
characteristic of the region. At many places they extend across the 
ridges, indicating that the streams by which they were formed existed 
before the ridges and persisted in their courses b}^ cutting into the 
basalt beds when those beds were uplifted. The canyons of Columbia 
and Snake rivers and the large coulees which formerly contained 



U. 8. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 




MAP OF QUINCY VALLEY, W^EAS CONTRIBUTING WATER 



U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 25 PLATE XIII 




Contours on water table. 

figures indicateelevation 

above sea level 



MAP OF QUINCY VALLEY, WASH., AND ADJACENT AREAS, SHOWING CONTOURS OF THE WATER TABLE AND AREAS CONTRIBUTIN 

TO THE VALLEY. 



GKOUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 135 

rivers, such as Grand Coulee and Moses Coulee, are conspicuous ex- 
amples of intensive stream trenching. 

TOPOGilAPHIC FEATURES OF THE REGION AROUND QUINCY 

VALLEY. 

The form of Quincy Yalley and of the principal features that 
bound it are in accord with the relations existing between structure 
and surface forms throughout the Walla Walla Plateau. Struc- 
turally Quincy Yalley is a broad, shallow basin, defined on the north 
by the fold that forms the Badger Hills, on the south by the arch of 
the Frenchman Hills, on the west by the monoclinal slope projected 
eastward from Table Mountain across the gorge of Columbia River, 
and on the east by a less obvious westerly dip of the rocks. 

West of Quincy Yalley is the gorge of Columbia River — a great 
trench cut into the resistant basalt to a depth of 800 feet and walled 
in many places by nearly vertical cliffs of basalt. The gorge is largely 
independent of the present structure, for it cuts squarely across such 
important east-west structural features as the Badger Hills and 
Frenchman Hills. Opposite Quincy Yalley the gorge runs parallel 
to the general trend of Table Mountain. Here its course may have 
been controlled to some extent by the structure, but that the control 
was not complete is shown by the fact that the monoclinal eastward 
dip seen in Table Mountain is continued across the gorge. 

The largest of the coulees in this region, and the one most closely 
related to the geologic history of Quincy Yalley, is Grand Coulee. 
Opening from the canyon of the Columbia in the northeastern corner 
of Grant County, it extends southwestward 40 miles across the 
plateau to the northern margin of Quincy Yalley. (See PL XIII.) 
Throughout the greater part of this distance it is a wide flat-bot- 
tomed canyon walled by cliffs of basalt. The bottom of the coulee 
contains a series of shallow lakes. 

There is abundant evidence that the .Grand Coulee is an abandoned 
channel of Columbia River. In the glacial epoch the northern part 
of the State was occupied by the Okanogan ice sheet and a lobe of 
that glacier extended across the canyon of Columbia River upon the 
Waterville Plateau. Deflected by this great ice dam, the waters of 
the Columbia flowed along the eastern face of the glacier, cut a deep 
gorge, formed a cataract 400 feet high just below the site of Coulee 
City, and, continuing southward, discharged into Quincy Yalley. 
In this basin during at least the early part of the glacial epoch the 
waters carried by Grand Coulee formed a large lake, from which they 
were probably returned to the valley of Columbia River over cata- 
racts at Frenchman Springs and the "Pot Holes" southwest of 
Quincy. Later they found an outlet, now occupied by lower Crab 
Creek, through the Frenchman Hills. This abandoned channel of 
19689°— wsp-E— 18 2 



136 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

the Columbia was described by Symons ^ in 1882 and by Russell ^ 
in 1893; the abandoned cataract which it contained was seen by 
Eussell, and both Symons and Russell made vague references to a 
very large Pleistocene lake, which Symons called Lake Lewis. The 
abandoned channel and cataract were also described by Calkins^ 
in 1905. 

SURFACE OF THE BASIN. 
ELEVATION, 

The floor of Quincy Valley is a nearly smooth plain, which is 
highest along its northern and western borders and slopes gently 
toward the south and east. Most of the plain lies between 1,200 and 
1,300 feet above sea level. The highest points are in Babcock Ridge, 
a smooth, gentle swell rising to an elevation of 1,600 feet, at the rim 
of the Columbia gorge; the lowest are in the sand-dune area south 
of Moses Lake, where the general elcA'ation ranges from 950 to 1,000 
feet. 

DRAINAGE. 

Crab Creek, the principal stream in Quincy Valley, rises in several 
branches in the vicinity of Davenport, Wash., at an elevation of 
about 2,500 feet. It flows at first southwestward and then westward 
as far as Adrian, whence it continues in a general southeasterly direc- 
tion to the head of Parker Horn, a long, narrow arm of Moses Lake 
(see PL XIII) ; this stretch of the stream is known as upper Crab 
Creek. Along the greater part of the stretch above the mouth of 
Wilson Creek the flow is perennial ; below Wilson Creek it is inter- 
mittent, the water sinking in some places and emerging from the 
gravel in others. During spring freshets there is a continuous flow, 
which for short periods may become very large. 

Moses Lake is about 13 miles long and from one-half to three- 
fourths mile in average width. In 1916 the elevation of the water 
surface was 1,046 feet above sea level. The lake is comparatively 
shallow, the maximum depth as a rule not exceeding 35 feet. 

From the west side of Moses Lake, about 2 miles north of its lower 
end, a shallow, meandering channel leads westward and then south- 
eastward across the sand-dune area. About 5 miles south of the lake 
this channel enters a coulee which cuts through the Frenchman Hills, 

^ Symons, T, W., Report of an examination of the upper Columbia River : 47th Cong., 
1st sess., S. Ex. Doc. 186, 1882. 

2 Russell, I. C, A geological reconnaissance in central Washington ; U. S. Geol. Survey 
Bull. 108, 1893. t 

3 Calkins, F. C, Geology and water resources of a portion of east-central Washington: 
U. S. Geol. Survey Water-Supply Paper 118, 1905. 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 137 

and, continuing in a southerly direction to a point about 15 miles 
south of Moses Lake, it opens into a broad-bottomed, steep-walled 
canyon which extends westward along the north side of Saddle 
Mountain to Columbia River. This drainage course, through which 
the overflow from Moses Lake finds its way into the Columbia, is 
known as lower Crab Creek. 

Lower Crab Creek receives contributions of water from the over- 
flow of Moses Lake, from seepage of ground water, and in small 
amounts from several coulees that discharge into it from the east. 
In its lower course the water sinks and ordinarily no surface water 
is delivered to the Columbia. 

Besides the surface water that enters Moses Lake by way of the 
channel opening into Parker Horn, considerable underflow enters the 
upper part of the lake or emerges as a large spring at the head of 
Rocky Ford Creek, which discharges into the lake. 

In the western part of the basin a narrow belt of country contig- 
uous to the gorge of the Columbia drains westward toward the 
river. This drainage reaches the river through a number of small 
gullies that head a short distance out on the plain and lead to cuts 
in the basalt rim rock. The gullies are dry except during rapid 
thaws or periods of heavy rain. 

Large areas in the central and southern parts of the basin are 
covered by deposits formed by the wind. In these areas the gentle 
slopes, the porous soil, and the constant shifting of the sand prevent 
the establishment of any permanent drainage sj^stem. The precipita- 
tion on these surfaces either sinks into the soil immediately or gathers 
in undrained hollows which have been scooped out by the wind and 
from which it escapes by seepage or evaporation. 

FEATURES PRODUCED BY WIND. 

The agent which at present is most active in modifying the surface 
of the basin is the wind. In the northern and western parts of the 
basin the wind has effected only slight changes in the shape of the 
surface, but the results of wind work are abundantly shown in the 
sand drifts along the fences bordering the roads, where the soil has 
been stirred up by traffic, and in the sand ripples in the plowed 
fields. In the sandy areas of the central and southern parts of the 
basin the effects of wind work are more pronounced, and are most 
conspicuous in the sand-dune area south and southwest of Moses 
Lake, where the surface is thickly covered with sand dunes inter- 
spersed with undrained depressions. Many of the dunes are 40 to 60 
feet high and one- fourth to one-half mile long, and in places chains 
of dunes extend for miles across the area. 



138 CONTEIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 191*7. 

Where the sand for building the dunes has been excavated by the 
wind, there are shallow , undrained basins, most of which are ellip- 
tical and which range in area from a few acres to more than 100 
acres. In that part of the sand-dune area locally known as the " Pot 
Holes" many of these basins contain ponds of water bordered by 
narrow strips of meadow. Because of constant evaporation from the 
ponds the water is somewhat alkaline and the surrounding meadows 
are covered by a thick growth of salt grass and by alkali crusts. 
Tules and other water-loving plants grow in the ponds, and willows 
are common on the lee side of the dunes adjacent to the ponds. 

In the sand-dune area the drainage courses have been greatly 
changed by the shifting sands. Thus Moses Lake owes its origin to 
the damming of Crab Creek by wind-blown sand. 

FEATURES PRODUCED BY STREAMS. 

The topography of the eastern part of the basin on both sides of 
Moses Lake, from Ephrata and Soap Lake to the sand-dune area, 
is largely the result of stream work. During the glacial epoch a 
great mass of gravel was discharged from the mouth of Grand Coulee 
and was spread in a sheet over the eastern part of Quincy Valley, 
completely obliterating the preexistent drainage lines and surface 
irregularities. As the glacial floods subsided the streams cut into the 
material thus laid down, and, with variations in the amount of run- 
off and temporary halts in the down-cutting process, produced gravel 
terraces separated by wide, flat-bottomed channels by which the pres- 
ent drainage is largely determined. Hiawatha Valley and Ephrata 
Valley are ancient stream valleys of this kind. Moses Lake occupies 
a similar ancient stream channel which was modified by wind-blown 
sand. From the water's edge steep banks rise abruptly to gravel 
terraces which occur at various heights up to 100 feet above the lake. 

CLIMATE. 

The "Big Bend country," embracing Douglas, Grant, Lincoln, and 
Adams counties, is recognized as the most arid part of the State of 
Washington. The average annual precipitation in this region, so 
far as the records show, ranges from 7 inches in the southern part to 
about 14 inches in the northern part. Temperatures exceeding 100° 
above zero in summer and 15° below zero in winter are not unusual, 
but owing to the dryness of the air the summer heat is seldom very 
oppressive and the cold of winter causes less suffering than in a 
more humid climate. 

Summarized data regarding precipitation in Quincy Valley and 
the surrounding region are presented in the following table : 



GROUKD WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 



139 



Mean monthly and annual precipitation, in inches, in Quincy Valley and adjacent 

region. 



station. 



Waterville 
Wilbur.... 
Ritzville... 
Ephrata... 
McConihe . 
Trinidad . . 
Wahluke . , 



Eleva- 




























tion 


Length 


























above 


of 


Jan. 


Feb. 


Mar. 


Apr. 


May. 


June. 


July. 


Aug. 


Sept. 


Oct. 


Nov. 


Dec. 


sea 


record. 


























level. 




























Feet. 


Years. 


























2,624 


o27 


1.67 


1.39 


0.96 


0.79 


1.26 


0.93 


0.47 


0.05 


0. 55 


0.77 


1.63 


1.92 


2,203 


«)20 


1.78 


1.31 


.78 


.79 


1.62 


1.07 


.57 


.58 


.62 


1.10 


1.86 


1.67 


1,825 


cl8 


1.28 


1.39 


.80 


.56 


.94 


.69 


.27 


.26 


.47 


.64 


1.61 


1.62 


1,265 


dlO 


.96 


.68 


.54 


.29 


.78 


.86 


.25 


■ .70 


.47 


.77 


.75 


.92 


1,072 


eb 


.82 


.75 


.33 


.38 


.59 


.61 


.37 


.44 


.19 


.90 


1.10 


.88 


900 


/8 


1.63 


1.15 


.52 


.33 


.55 


.66 


.29 


.15 


.44 


.52 


1.39 


1.32 


410 


g\Z 


1.17 


.75 


.51 


.24 


.45 


.54 


.33 


.37 


.25 


.69 


.93 


.89 



An- 
nual. 



12.84 
13.75 
10.53 
7.97 
7.36 
8.95 
7.12 



a Partial records for years 1890, 1892, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1913, 1914, and 1916 included, 
b Partial records for years 1892, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1907, 1909, and 1916 included. No record for years 1893 
to 1897. 
c Partial records for years 1899, 1900, 1902, 1903, 1905, 1906, 1907, and 1910 to 1916 included. 
d Partial records for years 1903, 1905, and 1907 to 1912. No records for years 1913 to 1916. 
c Partial record for 1916. 
/ Partial records for years 1909 and 1916. 
g Partial records for years 1904, 1911, 1913, and 1916. 

The mean annual precipitation in Quincy Valley, according to the 
records from Ephrata and McConihe,^ is between 7 and 8 inches. 
In the region north and east of the basin the precipitation increases 
with increase in elevation, as is shown by the table. 

Much of the winter precipitation is snow, which usually remains 
on the ground only a few weeks after each fall, but as it generally 
comes in periods of severe cold it forms a protective blanket that pre- 
vents plants from freezing. In melting it supplies moisture slowly 
enough to be absorbed by the fine deep soils of parts of the valley. 

Because of the lower elevation of Quincy Valley, the winters are 
somewhat milder than in most parts of the adjacent region, and the 
frost- free season is longer. This is an important factor in the grow- 
ing of fruit. The large number of clear sunny days is also an impor- 
tant factor in the ripening and coloring of fruits in this region.^ 

SOIL. AND VEGETATION. 

Before 1900 practically the only settlers in the basin were a few 
stockmen who had selected lands along Crab Creek and Moses Lake, 
chiefly because of the ready water supply, but also because of the 
good pasturage on the Crab Creek bottoms and among the sand 
dunes south of Moses Lake. 

After 1900, other settlers, favorably impressed with the soil and 
general aspect of the country and influenced by the success of wheat 
farmers on the Waterville Plateau to the north, came into Quincy 
Valley to raise wheat. Most of the early wheat growers settled in 
the northwestern part of the basin where the conditions for raising 
wheat are the most favorable, and as some of the first crops were 

1 McConihe is a station near the head of Moses Lake (sec. 28, T. 20 N^ R. 27 E.). 

2 Saunders, E. J., Soil survey of Quincy area : U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. Soils Field Opera- 
tions, 1911, p. 12. 



140 CONTRIBUTIOKS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

exceptionally good, Quincy Valley was heralded as a newly dis- 
covered wheat region. The result was a great influx of settlers into 
all parts of the basin and within a few years practically all the 
public land was taken as homesteads. 

At present (1917) only the lands in the vicinity of Quincy, on 
Babcock Kidge west of Quincy, and in the region extending south- 
ward from Quincy, are used regularly for growing wheat. In a 
season of average rainfall the wheat crop averages about 8 to 10 
bushels per acre,^ and in exceptionally favorable seasons 25 to 30 
bushels per acre has been reported. Because of the higher elevation 
and somewhat greater precipitation the wheat lands on Babcock 
Ridge yield the best crops. 

But the lands in a large part of the basin proved unsuitable for 
raising wheat, and many of the settlers, discouraged by repeated 
crop failures, abandoned their claims or stayed only long enough to 
obtain title. Some tracts which would not produce wheat were found, 
however, to yield fair crops of plants more resistant to drought, such 
as rye, corn, and Sudan grass. In most seasons these crops do not 
mature sufficiently to produce marketable grain, but they make good 
winter feed, which is sometimes sold locally but is more often fed to 
the stock on the farm. Thus by feeding the farm products and uti- 
lizing the open range, or, in other words, combining farming with 
stock raising on a small scale, many of the settlers have managed to 
get along very well. 

Large tracts, including the region covered by drifting sand, chiefly 
in the southern part of the basin, and the stony areas in the north- 
eastern part, are entirely uncultivated, for many original settlers on 
these lands soon found them worthless without irrigation and con- 
sequently abandoned most of them. The uncultivated areas are used 
for grazing by resident stockmen and by sheepmen who are forced 
to bring their flocks out of the mountains at the beginning of winter. 
Except for short periods during the winter, when deep snow is on 
the ground, cattle and sheep subsist on the native sagebrush and 
bunch grass. Four or five weeks of feeding, in the aggregate, 
usually suffice to carry stock through the winter. Rye hay, corn 
fodder, alfalfa hay, Sudan grass, and straw are generally used for 
winter feeding. 

The report on Quincy Valley by Mangum, Van Duyne, and West- 
over,^ published by the United States Department of Agriculture, 
contains a full discussion of the various types of soil in the valley 
and their value for agriculture, and includes also a detailed map 
showing the areas covered by the soils of various types. 

1 Mangum, A. W., Van Duyne, Cornelius, and Westover, H. L., Soil survey of the 
Quincy area, Wasli. : U. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. Soils Field Operations, 1911 (Advance sheets), 
p. 17, 1913. 



y^ 



U. S. G 
FEET 

2,000-| 



1,500 



r.ooo- 



soo- 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 425 PLATE XIV 

FEET 

p 2,000 



liQiLiiiJilllllOiTLl 






niimiiiioiJLLwiiaca&iMininiim 



FEET 
2,000- 

!,500- 
1,000 
500- 



SecL level 



-l,500 



- 1,000 



-500 



2<lbses XdJce 






ilMMlllllMlDIIIi^^ lilPimiifMlJiMD iiMlCEil-DMliM^ 



FEET 
•2,000 

-J,500 

-1,000 
-500 



Sea- level 



U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 
FEET 



WATER-SUPPLY PAPER 425 PLATE XIV 




MimilBiiiMraijaiiiiiimfflmiffiiDi^^^ 



Wind-blown 
deposits 



QUATERNARY 



Glacial outwc 
deposits 



Horizontal scale 



TERTIARY 

■ Mtjocene 



-.^IffipMil 

'■^' iiiatiWiia 



mm 

m 



\3Klm3 basalt 



GEOLOGIC SECTION ACROSS QUINCY VALLEY. WASH. 



GROUND WATER IN QUIKCY VALLEY, WASH. 



141 



GEOLOGY. 



GENERAL FEATURES. 

Quincy Valley lies within the vast area which in Miocene time was 
inundated by great floods of basaltic lava. Though covered in most 
places by sedimentary deposits, the basalt nowhere in the basin is 
very far beneath the surface. The great thickness of the basalt 
series is well shown in the gorge of the Columbia, which has been cut 
into the basalt to a depth exceeding 800 feet without exposing the 
underlying rocks. 

The sedimentary deposits overlying the basalt consist of uncon- 
solidated beds of clay, sand, and gravel derived from the Okanogan 
glacier, which occupied the Waterville Plateau in the Pleistocene 
epoch and discharged its debris-laden floods into Quincy Valley 
through the Grand Coulee. (See PI. XIII.) Some of these deposits 
were laid down in the quiet waters of a lake ; others were laid down 
by streams. Overlying the basalt, the lake beds, and, in some places, 
the stream deposits is a mantle of wind-blown sand and silt. (See 
fig. 6 and geologic section, PL XIV.) 



System. 


Series. 




Recent. 


Quater- 




nary. 






Pleisto- 




cene. 


Ter- 


Mio- 


tiary. 


cene. 



Formation. 



Wind - blown 
deposits. 

-Unconformity- - 

Glacial-out- 
wash depos- 
its. 

-Unconformity-- 



o 



Lake beds. 



-Unconformity— 



Yakima basalt. 



Section. 



•.o.>:.»-.c>» 

to'P, •.o:. o' 

;d. <>:o d 

3.o<f.o.:o: 
• o. o '.o.. 
0. .-o.. < 



Thick- 
ness in 
feet. 



50 



90 




300 



1,300± 



Character of forma- 
tion. 



Wind-blown silt and 
sand. 



Stratified sand, 
gravel, and boul- 
ders. 



Stratified clay and 
sand with local 
beds of gravel and 
boulders. 



Basalt with a few 
thin beds of tufi. 



Character of topog- 
raphy and soil. 



Level plains and sand 
dunes. Soil rang- 
ing from silty loam 
to dune sand. 



Terraces and broad, 
shallow channels. 
Gravelly soil. 



No natural exposures 
except in a few 
places on the faces 
of terraces and in 
small areas where 
soil has been re- 
moved by winds. 



Rough, broken areas 
and precipitous clifts. 



Figure 6. — Generalized columnar section of geologic formations in Quincy Valley, Wash. 



142 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

YAKIMA BASALT.' 

The basalt of Quincy Valley, in its typical development, is a hard, 
dense, fine-grained rock, varying in color from dark gray to black, 
except on weathered surfaces, where it is usually brownish. The lava 
that formed the basalt was not all poured out at one time but was a 
series of flows, and each bed represents a distinct extrusion. The 
texture of the basalt shows considerable variation. At the upper sur- 
face of a bed the rock is usually scoriaceous, or " honeycombed," be- 
cause of the expansion and escape of the dissolved gases in the lava, 
but the rock becomes increasingly dense toward the interior of the 
flow. 

By the characteristic "honeycombed" structure the individual 
lava flows can be identified, and different flows can be distinguished 
from one another. In the gorge of the Columbia, where the basalt 
underlying Quincy Valley is exposed, six or eight different flows can 
be identified. The individual beds are usually not more than 50 to 
150 feet thick, but their lateral extent is great, for their edges may 
be traced for miles along the canyon walls without any evidence of 
thinning out. At a few places thin beds of tuff, or volcanic ash, are 
interbedded with the massive basalt, but their volume is insignificant 
in comparison with the great volume of the basalt. 

A characteristic and almost universal feature of the basalt is the 
system of joints perpendicular to the bedding planes, by which the 
sheets are broken into prismatic columns as a result of contraction in 
the process of cooling. This columnar jointing is splendidly dis- 
played in the palisades of the Columbia gorge and the great coulees. 

Structurally Quincy Valley is a shallow basin. At the rim of the 
Columbia gorge the beds of basalt dip eastward at an angle of 1° or 
2°. Farther east the beds gradually flatten out and then rise again 
with a gentle inclination east of the valley. To the north the beds 
rise rather steeply to the Badger Hills, and to the south they are up- 
turned to form, the Frenchman Hills. The dips do not represent the 
original position of the beds but are due chiefly to gentle warping at 
some time since the deposition of the basalt. 

Normally the basalt is compact and contains almost no pores 
capable of transmitting water. The ability of the basalt to absorb 
and store large quantities of water is due to the zones of porous rock 
between the successive beds and to the joints by which the beds are 
broken. Although the porous contact zones are generally thin and 
irregular, in many places they are thick, and, in connection with 
communicating passages produced by vertical and horizontal joints, 

1 This name was first used by Geo. Otis Smith in Water-Supply Paper 55 to differen- 
tiate the basalt of Miocene age from the older and younger basalt formations included 
in the general term Columbia River lava as used by I. C. Russell. F. C. Calkins, in 
Water-Supply Paper 118, mapped the basalt of Quincy Valley as Yakima basalt, and 
later maps correlate the basalt of this area with the typical Yakima basalt. 



\ 



GROUND WATER IK QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 143 

they form a circulating system through which water may travel for 
long distances. 

LAKE BEDS. 

CHARACTER AND DISTRIBUTION. 

Lying upon the surface of the basalt are sedimentary deposits con- 
sisting of a series of stratified clay, sand, and gravel, which there is 
good reason to believe were laid down in impounded waters. The 
deposits are rarely exposed at the surface but are shown by well 
records to be widely distributed and continuous over nearly all parts 
of Quincy Valley. In the western, central, and southern parts of the 
basin the formation is covered by wind-deposited soils and drifting 
sands, and in the eastern part by glacial gravel. (See geologic sec- 
tion, PL XIV.) 

Along the rim of the Columbia gorge the lake beds are absent and 
the basalt outcrops at the surface. In most of the western and north- 
western parts of the valley they are not more than 30 to 40 feet thick, 
but they thicken eastward, and wells on Morrison Flat penetrate 
nearly 300 feet without reaching the basalt. In the eastern part of 
the basin the upper 150 to 200 feet of the series has been removed by 
stream erosion and replaced by a thick covering of glacial stream 
deposits. 

No complete section of the lake beds is exposed anywhere in the 
area, but as encountered in wells the beds consist of a series of alter- 
nating beds of clay, silt, and sand, and occasionally a layer of gravel. 
The clays are light gray, greenish gray, blue, or black, and are gen- 
erally heavy and compact, but are in places of light weight and open 
texture because of an admixture of volcanic ash. Some of the dark- 
colored clays contain large amounts of organic matter, a fact that 
probably accounts for the foul odor and gas reported from some wells 
that penetrate the clays. Petrified wood and bones and fossil shells 
are found in the clays. The coarser materials of the lake deposits are 
of all grades, ranging from light-colored silt and very fine sand to 
beds of coarse boulders. 

ORIGIN AND AGE. 

The topography of the basin, the regular stratification of the sedi- 
ments, the presence of fossils, and the widespread occurrence of 
erratic boulders are evidences that the valley was at one time occn- 
pied by a lake. This subject will be more fully discussed in the final 
report. To create a lake in the valley at the present time all that 
would be necessary, providing the run-off were sufficient, would be 
to block the gap where lower Crab Creek passes through the French- 
man Hills. 

19689°— wsp-E— 18 3 



144 CONTEIBUTIONS TO HYDKOLOGY OF UNITED STATES^ 1917. 

W. H. Dall states that the fossils collected from the lake beds are 
fresh-water species, all of which are still living and are not older 
than the Quaternary period. They are of the boreal type and could 
have lived in the cold water of a glacial lake. 

GLACIAL OUTWASH. 
DISTRIBUTION AND CHARACTER. 

Deposits of glacial outwash cover a large area extending from the 
mouth of Grand Coulee, past Ephrata, and southward into the 
Moses L^ake region and Hiawatha Valley. They consist mostly of 
fragments of basalt, but other rocks, chiefly granite, are sparsely rep- 
resented. The materials are fairly well assorted, ranging in coarse- 
ness from sand to large boulders. 

Near Soap Lake and Ephrata these deposits lie directly on the 
basalt, but farther south, in the vicinity of Moses Lake and in 
Hiawatha Valley, they lie on the lake beds. Having been deposited 
on an uneven surface, the formation varies in thickness from place 
to place; its greatest known thickness, as shown by well records, is 
about 90 feet. 

ORIGIN AND AGE. 

The outwash deposits were derived from the same source as the 
lake beds — that is, they were laid down by the debris-laden floods that 
were discharged through Grand Coulee from the Okanogan glacier 
in the Pleistocene epoch. Most of the material forming the higher 
terraces near the mouth of Grand Coulee was probably deposited at 
the same time that the fine sediments were being laid down in the 
glacial lake. The sudden lessening of the velocity of the flood waters 
as they emerged from Grand Coulee and spread out over the plain 
and the consequent decrease in their carrying power caused the coarse 
material to be deposited near the mouth of the canyon while the finer 
sediments were carried into the lake. 

The lowering of the lake outlet did not cease with the draining of 
the lake but continued below the floor of the lake, the result being 
that in the eastern part of the basin the upper part of the lake beds 
and much of the previously deposited outwash material was re- 
moved, and the general level of this part of the valley was reduced. 
Later more outwash material was deposited on the eroded surface 
and the region was built up to its present general level. Neither 
deposition nor erosion, however, was continuous, for the glacial 
streams alternately cut channels and then refilled them with gravel, 
and these successive episodes are recorded in the terraces of the 
region. 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 145 

WIND-BLOWN DEPOSITS. 

Overlying the basalt, the lake beds, and, in some places, the glacial 
outwash deposits, is a thin mantle of wind-blown material consisting 
of fragments ranging in size from very fine silt to coarse sand. 
Except for the gravelly soils of the eastern part of the basin and 
the residual soils in the areas of outcropping basalt along the edge 
of the Columbia gorge, practically all the soils of the basin are 
composed of wind-blown materials, which also extend beyond the 
boundaries of the basin and cover the Frenchman Hills and the plain 
south of the hills. North of the basin wind-blown soils are found 
on the Badger Hills and the Waterville plateau. The wind-blown 
deposits of Quincy Valley are derived from the fine sediments depos- 
ited in the glacial lake. Under the prevailing arid climate these dry, 
loose-textured materials, only slightly protected by the meager vege- 
tation, are easily moved about by the high winds, which at certain 
times of the year occur with great frequency. In the western part 
of the basin, where the soils are of very fine texture, the winds have 
produced only minor irregularities of the surface, but farther east, 
where the sands are coarser, the effect of the wind is much more 
conspicuous, and sand dunes are familiar features. 

WATER TABLE. 

DEPTH TO WATER. 

The depth to water in Quincy Valley was ascertained at about 
250 widely distributed points, at most of wKich it was accurately 
measured in wells. Where measurement was not possible, reports 
were obtained from well owners, drillers, and other reliable persons. 
In general the depth to water varies with the elevation of the land 
surface, the water being nearest the surface in the low areas and the 
depth increasing progressively with increase in altitude. 

In a part of the sand-dune area southwest of Moses Lake the 
ground water comes to the surface in many springs and collects in 
depressions among the dunes, forming small ponds and marshy tracts. 
Extending northward from this area to the vicinity of Mae and west- 
ward along the foot of the Frenchman Hills to a point nearly 20 miles 
west of Crab Creek, and including a large part of the dune area, 
is an extensive region in which water is less than 50 feet below the 
surface. Smaller areas outside of the dune area in which the ground 
water is within 50 feet of the surface include a part of Hiawatha 
Valley, the lowest terraces bordering Moses Lake, the bottom lands 
along Rocky Ford Creek, and strips of land on both sides of upper 
Crab Creek in its lower course, where it is locally known as Willow 
Creek. 



146 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. . 

The depth to water ranges from 50 to 100 feet throughout much 
of the sandy country in the south-central part of the basin, includ- 
ing the district near Bailey and that south of Morrison Flat. Other 
areas where the depth to water ranges between 50 and 100 feet in- 
clude most of Hiawatha Valley, terraces of intermediate height in 
the vicinity of Moses Lake, and the lower terraces around Ephrata, 
Soap Lake, and Adrian. 

The depth to water ranges from 100 to 150 feet in a large area in 
the west-central part of the basin extending westward from Mor- 
rison Flat and northward from Low Gap almost to Winchester. 
Other areas where water is found at these depths include the highest 
terraces in the Moses Lake region, the highest parts of the inter- 
stream areas extending from Ephrata to the vicinity of Moses Lake, 
and large parts of the upland surface east of Moses Lake and upper 
Crab Creek. 

The depth to water is 150 to 200 feet throughout Morrison Flat, 
south of the Great Northern Railway, in the inmiediate vicinity of 
Winchester, and in a belt about 4 miles wide extending from Win- 
chester to Burke. 

FORM or THE WATER TABLE. 

Near Quincy, in most of the area south and west of Quincy, and 
in a belt north of the railroad near Winchester the depth to water 
ranges from 150 to 300 feet. 

The position of the water table, or upper surface of the zone of 
saturation, is shown with respect to sea level by contours on Plate 
XIII. West of the steep slope that extends along the east side of 
Morrison Flat from within 4 or 5 miles of Ephrata almost to the 
Frenchman Hills the water table is nearly level or only slightly in- 
clined, except along the north edge of the basin, where it rises toward 
the Badger Hills, and along the west edge, where it drops abruptly in 
the direction of the Columbia gorge. The elevation of the water 
table throughout this area, according to accurate determinations 
made at a large number of points, is about 1,080 feet above sea level. 
East of this steep slope the water table descends rapidly to a mini- 
mum level of about 1,000 feet above the sea. 

In the eastern province the water table descends at a fairly uni- 
form rate from the north to Moses Lake (altitude, 1,046 feet) with 
the surface of which it coincides. On the west side of the south 
part of Moses Lake the water table descends abruptly from the 
lake level to an elevation of only 1,030 feet above sea level in Hia- 
watha Valley and the vicinity of Mae. Thence, it declines more 
gradually southward to a level of about 1,000 feet in the sand-dune 
area, where it comes to the surface in many places and coincides 
with the surfaces of the ponds. 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 147 

WATER-BEARING FORMATIONS. 
WATER IN BASALT. 

The basalt underlying Quincy Valley consists of a series of beds, 
each of which represents a separate flow. The upper crust of a lava 
sheet generally has a vesicular or " honeycombed " structure, caused 
by the escape of steam and other gases from the molten lava, and its 
upper surface is generally rough and broken, owing to sudden chill- 
ing of the lava. Consequently many openings, some of which are ex- 
tensive, occur between the successive beds, and these are capable of 
holding much water. In some places the successive beds are separated 
by beds of tuff and other volcanic fragmental material, but these 
interbedded deposits are of small volume and almost impervious, and 
consequently furnish little storage space for water. The interior 
of a bed, formed of a lava that cooled gradually, is usually fine 
grained and compact, but in the process of cooling there was much 
contraction, so that joints and fissures which provide for the storage 
and circulation of water were formed throughout the mass. The 
total capacity of the basalt formation for water is therefore rather 
large. 

In the western part of the basin, including the region around 
•Quincy, Burke, and Winchester, and north of the railroad between 
Winchester and Ephrata, almost all the wells obtain their water from 
the basalt. Near Quincy and Winchester large supplies are obtained 
for irrigation. A number of wells yield between 250 and 500 gallons 
per minute and one well near Quincy produces between 900 and 1,000 
gallons per minute under continuous pumping. Near the rim of the 
Columbia gorge some wells have failed to obtain adequate supplies, 
but throughout the rest of the region failures are rare. Most of the 
large yields of water are obtained from beds of the " honeycombed " 
texture found between layers of compact material. A few of them 
come from the massive basalt. 

The water in the basalt is derived from that which falls on the 
basin and percolates downward and from that which has been ab- 
sorbed by the basalt outside of the basin and has traveled laterally 
underground perhaps for a long distance. In the western part of the 
basin, where the materials overlying the basalt are dry, most of the 
water that falls as rain or snow does not get far below the surface. 
This statement in especially true of the precipitation in the areas 
overlain by fine silty soils. Where the basalt is at or near the surface 
or where the sediments above the basalt consist of gravel or coarse 
sand the precipitated water sinks more rapidly below the reach of 
evaporation and transpiration, and a larger proportion reaches the 
water table. The numerous undrained basins are also favorable to 



148 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

intake of water. If the average annual precipitation over an area of 
300 square miles in the western and central parts of the basin west 
of the sag in the water table shown in Plate XIII is 7J inches, and 
10 per cent of this precipitation reaches the water table, the average 
annual underground supply from this source is about 12,000 acre- feet.. 

The structure of Quincy Valley, determined by the lava beds that 
dip toward it from all directions, is favorable for the accumulation 
of ground water under the basin, but, on the other hand, the gorge 
of the Columbia, and, to a less extent, Moses Coulee and other deep 
coulees, are very unfavorable. 

The map (PI. XIII) shows that the water table is highest along 
the northern border of the basin. As water underground, like water 
at the surface, is highest near its source, this map indicates that one 
of the main sources of supply is the plateau north of the basin. The 
basalt beds out of which the plateau is built dip southward, and 
water which falls on the plateau may be led down the dipping strata 
beneath Quincy Valley. The plateau lies considerably higher than 
the basin and receives more abundant precipitation. As it is a sur- 
face of extensive erosion in which porous beds of the basalt formation 
are exposed, much of the rain and snow which it receives may be 
absorbed by the rocks. 

Some parts of the plateau are, however, so deeply dissected as tO' 
diminish its efficacy as an intake area. Lynch, Moses, and Grand 
coulees (see PI. XIII) are cut many hundreds of feet into the basalt,, 
and the porous beds are exposed to leakage along the walls of the 
coulees. Where the coulees cut the water-bearing beds that underlie 
Quincy Valley and extend down to the level of the water table be- 
neath the basin they effectively bar the movement of ground water 
into the basin and constitute definite outer limits for the areas con- 
tributing ground water. The contributory area on the north is 
therefore limited by Lynch, Moses, and Grand coulees, but between 
Moses Coulee and Grand Coulee there is no impassable barrier to 
the migration of ground water. (See PL XIII.) 

That there is not very ready movement through the basalt laterally 
is indicated by the nearly level position of the water table over the 
greater part of the basin and by its abrupt downward slope, especially 
on the west side of this level area. The contributory area on the 
north probably does not include more than 300 square miles. The 
average annual precipitation on this area is about 15 inches. If 5 
per cent of this precipitation is absorbed and migrates to Quincy 
Valley, the annual contribution is about 12,000 acre-feet. 

West of Quincy Valley the gorge of Columbia River extends far 
below the level of the water table of the deepest water-bearing bed 
that has been reached by wells in the basin. There is therefore no 
contribution from the west. The loss of water from the basalt beds 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 149 

at the outcrops is, however, not so great as might be expected, as is 
shown by the form of the water table (PL XIII), by the large yields 
of wells situated within a few miles of the gorge of Columbia River, 
and by the scarcity of large springs along the gorge. The retention 
of the water in the reservoirs of basalt is probably due both to the 
eastward dip of the beds and to a general lack of lateral communi- 
cation between the cavities in the basalt. 

There is an erroneous belief among some of the inhabitants of 
Quincy Valley that the water in the basalt comes from Lake Chelan, 
because the water table throughout most of the western and central 
parts of the basin stands at practically the same level as the lake — 
about 1,080 feet above sea level. It is obvious that no water can be 
derived from this source because of the existence of the intervening 
<]olumbia gorge, which is cut several hundred feet below the level 
of the lake, and below the water table of Quincy Yalley, and is also 
cut through the water-bearing beds tapped by the wells in the basin. 

That no large supply is received from the region south of Quincy 
Valley is shown by the water levels in the southern part of the basin 
and by the structure and topography of the region to the south. The 
northern limb of the anticline that forms the Frenchman Hills is 
narrow and the area south of these hills is deeply dissected. 

East of Quincy Valley is an extensive area that slopes toward 
the basin and is underlain by beds of basalt that dip toward and 
extend beneath the basin. These beds no doubt deliver water in 
the general direction of the basin. On .account of the sag in the 
surface and in the water table in the eastern part of the basin (PI. 
XIII) this water probably does not reach the central and western 
parts of the basin but leaks into the sediments that overlie the basalt 
in the eastern part. If the more impervious beds of the basalt 
formation are sufficiently competent as confining beds, some of the 
water in the underlying porous beds may be carried by artesian 
pressure to the central and western parts of the basin, but there is 
considerable, evidence that such artesian movement is absent or 
unimportant. 

It appears, therefore, that most of the water in the basalt in the 
western and central parts of the basin is derived from rain and 
snow that fall there or on the upland farther north. 

In the western part of the basin artesian pressure that will lift 
the water in deep wells much above the water table is not to be ex- 
pected because of the depressing influence of the gorge of Columbia 
Eiver. In the low area adjacent to Crab Creek and Moses Lake, 
where the water table sags (see PL XIII), the water from deep 
basalt beds would j)robably rise farther above the level of the water 
table, and it is possible that the artesian pressure would be sufficient 
to bring the water to the surface in the lowest places. 



150 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

That the quantity of water stored in the basalt beneath the basin 
is large and that there is considerable underground circulation is 
shown by the fact that single wells yield 250 to 1,000 gallons a minute 
without diminution in the supply great enough to have been detected. 
The amount of water stored beneath the basin is, however, not a 
safe criterion by which to gage possible development of irrigation, 
for it may have taken centuries for this water to accumulate and the 
rate of inflow may be very slow. In considering the amount of water 
available for irrigation the quantity now stored in the rocks is not 
so important as the annual increment to the supply. It is evident 
that even though much water is stored beneath the basin, continual 
withdrawals in excess of replenishment will result in a gradual 
lowering of the water table. 

Before any water w.as pumped there was probably a natural bal- 
ance between loss and gain, the leakage out of the basalt in Quincy 
Valley being about equal to the intake, and leakage will continue 
in spite of recoveries by pumping. Therefore, even if the average 
annual intake is as much as 24,000 acre-feet, the supply that will be 
available year by year is less than this amount, although by pumping 
out the water now in storage a much larger quantity could be obtained 
for a few years. 

Whether the water table has been lowered by the pumping that 
has already been done is not precisely known. The numerous exact 
measurements of depths to water that have been made in connection 
with the present investigation, will, however, make it possible to de- 
termine very closely the effects of future pumping operations. 

The conclusions regarding the water in the basalt underlying 
Quincy Valley may be briefly stated as follows: The quantity of 
water stored in the basalt is large. The conditions are such that it 
is impossible to estimate closely the annual intake or the amount 
that can be recovered annually by pumping, without drawing se- 
riously on the reserve, but the authors believe that the annual intake 
of water is not more than 24,000 acre-feet, and that the quantity 
which can safely be pumped annually within the area in which the 
wells end in basalt is less than this amount. The available supply 
is doubtless adequate to serve indefinitely the land now under irriga- 
tion, and experience may prove that considerably more land can be 
brought under irrigation. The geologic and topographic condi- 
tions make it certain, however, that it will be impossible to irrigate 
the entire basin with water obtained from this source, or even a 
large proportion of the area in which the wells end in basalt, and 
Ihey also indicate that it would be unwise at present to increase the 
area to be irrigated with the water from the basalt by more than a 
few thousand acres. 



GROUKD WATER IN" QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 151 

WATER IN LAKE BEDS. 

Throughout the central part of the basin — on Morrison Flat and 
adjacent areas to the north and west and in the sandy country ex- 
tending southward from Morrison Flat to the Frenchman Hills 
and southwestward to Bailey and Low Gap — most of the wells 
obtain water from the unconsolidated, fine-grained, lake beds that 
overlie the basalt. The material penetrated in wells in this part of 
the basin consists of clay and sand in alternating beds, and a few 
thin layers described as " lime rock " or " hardpan." Beneath these 
deposits basalt is found at depths ranging from less than 100 to 
more than 350 feet in different localities. Beds of quicksand, coarsei 
basaltic sand, and occasionally of fine gravel that yield good sup- 
plies of water are found at intervals below the water table. 

Many wells have been sunk into the lake beds, and, in so far as in- 
formation was obtained, none of them have failed to get water, 
although a number of owners of comparatively shallow stock or 
domestic wells have reported " small " or " insufficient " yields. Wells 
that are properly con^ructed and are sunk deep enough to penetrate 
several water-bearing beds generally fulfill all requirements. Pump- 
ing plants supplying water for irrigation have been installed on 
Morrison Flat and in a number of other places, and single wells 
have been reported to yield 300 gallons per minute. 

In the lake-beds area the water table is at about the same elevation 
as in the basalt area to the west and distinctly higher than in the 
area of glacial outwash to the east. It appears, therefore, that the 
water in the lake beds is derived from the same sources as that in 
the basalt and is not supplied to any important extent by Crab Creek 
or the glacial-outwash deposits. 

WATER IN GLACIAL-OUTWASH DEPOSITS. 

In the eastern part of the basin, in an area extending from 
Ephrata, Soap Lake, and Adrian, to the vicinity of Moses Lake and 
beyond, the principal water-bearing formation consists of rudely 
stratified deposits of waterworn and water-sorted sand, gravel,- and 
boulders. In some places this formation lies on the lake beds, and 
in others it lies directly on the basalt. Owing to irregularities in 
the surface on which it rests and in its own upper surface its thick- 
ness is variable, ranging from only a few feet to 90 feet or more. 

Being unconsolidated and containing a large proportion of coarse 
material, the glacial-outwash deposits allow very free circulation of 
water. Wells in this material yield large quantities with very little 
lowering of water level. In the Moses Lake region large supplies for 
irrigation are obtained from wells that are sunk only 2 or 3 feet 
below the water level. One such well was tested in connection with 
the present investigation — a well on the farm of George C. Hill at 



152 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

Mae. This "svell is 3J feet square and 78 feet deep and is equipped 
with a 12-horsepower gasoline engine and a 3-inch horizontal cen- 
trifugal pump. At the beginning of the test, before the pump was 
started, the water stood Ti.G feet below the surface of the ground. 
When the pump was started the water level was rapidly drawn down 
to 74.9 feet, but was not further lowered during a 20-minute test. 
The drawdown was, therefore, only 0.3 foot. The discharge as 
measured was 270 gallons per minute. When the pump was stopped 
the water level rose immediately to its normal position of 74.6 feet 
below the surface. Owners of many other wells in this region report 
equally good results. 

The glacial-outwash deposits receive (1) water that falls as rain 
or snow on that part of Quincy Valley underlain by the outwash de- 
posits and sinks directly into them; (2) water that falls on the exten- 
sive drainage basin of Crab Creek and is poured into Quincy Valley 
either as surface water or as underflow of Crab Creek; (3) water 
that falls on the elevated region east of Quincy Valley and south 
of the drainage basin of Crab Creek and is carried in freshets to the 
valley, where part of it sinks into the outwash deposits; (4) similar 
storm waters from the eastern part of the Badger Hills and the central 
part of Quincy Valley; (5) water from the basalt under the plateau 
north of the basin and from the basalt and overlying lake beds in the 
western and central parts of the basin, which enters the outwash 
deposits from the northwest or west; (6) water that falls on the 
region east of Quinc}^ Valley, percolates into the underlying basalt, 
and moves westward toward the basin. (See PL XIV.) It will be 
seen, therefore, that the Moses Lake region of Quincy Valley forms 
a sort of huge trap for the water that falls on it and on a large adja- 
cent region. The only outlets are (1) the gap of lower Crab Creek, 
(2) the cavities in the basalt of the Frenchman Hills, and (3) the at- 
mosphere, which removes large quantities of water that is at or near 
the surface. Xo water is contributed from the Grand Coulee, for Soap 
Lake, which lies at the mouth of the coulee, never overflows, and it is 
separated more or less effectively from the outwash deposits of 
Quincy Valley by a ledge of basalt. The alkaline character of its 
water shows that it does not discharge by underflow. 

The most important sources of water in the outwash deposits are 
the first two mentioned. The underflow from the west must neces- 
sarily be small. The basalt formation beneath the region east of the 
basin apparentlj^ dips very gently toward the basin, but it is deeply 
trenched by coulees that interrupt the migration of water through it. 
Some ground water no doubt reaches the Moses Lake region from the 
east through porous lava beds that are continuous beneath the coulees, 
but the contributions from this source are probably not large. 

The movements and disposal of water from the drainage basin of 
upper Crab Creek is for convenience shown diagrammatically in 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 



153 



Adrian, 
SiriK 

f/ h 



6^V 



tf'V 






\ ^^ 
\ 
\ 



RocKyTord, 
Springs 







figure 7. This water enters the basin partly as surface flow and 
partly as underflow. 

The surface flow divides a short distance below Adrian, a part 
going southward through a channel locally known as Willow Creek 
into Parker Horn of Moses Lake, and the other part going westward 
a short distance on the north 
side of the Great Northern 
Railway into a large, shallow 
basin known as the Adrian 
Sink. In the earlier part of a 
flood most of the water takes 
the latter course, and it con- 
tinues to flow in this direc- 
tion until the sink is filled, 
after which the w^ater goes 
down the channel leading ^^'/ 
into Moses Lake. J^/ 

Both from Adrian Sink and ^ 
from the channel leading to 
Moses Lake water percolates 
into the glacial gravels and 
slowly moves underground in 
a general southward direc- 
tion. Part of^this water re- 
appears in large springs at 
the head of Rocky Ford 
Creek, and thence flows into 
Moses Lake. The rest moves 
southward through the grav- 
els, a part seeping into Moses 
Lake and a part eventually 
reaching the surface in the 
springs, ponds, and swampy 
tracts of the sand-dune area 
south of the lake. 

Moses Lake receives water 
from streams, precipitation 

on its surface, and under- figure T. — Diagram showing movements and dis- 

-i * i\ c\' posal of surface and ground water in the 

grOUna seepage; ana aiS- Moses Lake region of Quincy Valley, Wash. 

charges water by surface 

flow through its outlet, by evaporation from its surface, and by 
seepage through its sides and bottom. As shown by the slope of 
the water table toward the lake (PL XIV), ground water enters the 
lake along almost its entire length on the east side and along the 
northern part of its west side. Similarly a slope of the water table 
away from the lake indicates a loss of water along the west side as 




I 



154 CONTRIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

far north as the big bend 4 miles north of Mae. In the sandy country 
near the south end of the lake the loss by seepage is considerable. 
Farther north, however, loss by seepage appears to be small in spite 
of the decided slope of the water table away from the lake, for water 
levels in wells very close to the lake are considerably below the lake 
level, a condition that obviously could not exist if there were any 
considerable seepage from the lake. The sides of the lake along this 
stretch are formed of gravels that differ little in texture and com- 
position from the water-bearing gravels found in wells throughout 
the region. Through these gravels the water generally moves with 
the greatest freedom, and the comparative imperviousness of the 
gravels forming the lake shore must be ascribed to an extraneous 
cause, such as natural puddling or a sealing of the pores by silt or 
vegetal growth, or possibly to some extent by the precipitation 
of chemical substances. Much of the water that seeps out of the 
lake returns to the surface farther south. 

The amount of water annually available from the outwash de- 
posits is to some extent indicated by the amount that enters the 
area and by the amount that is discharged. Concerning the part 
that is added through stream flow and precipitation, apprx;ximate 
information is available, but the amounts entering as underflow are 
unknown. 

The following table, compiled chiefly from measurements and esti- 
mates made by F. F. Henshaw, of the United States Geological Sur- 
vey, based on stream-flow records collected by the Geological Survey 
and on precipitation records by the Weather Bureau, both in co- 
operation with the Grant Realty Co., summarizes the available data : 

A dditions to and losses from water supply of Moses Lake region, Quincy Valley, 

1910 to 1913, inclusive. 



1910 



1911 



1912 



1913 



Flow of Crab Creek at Adrian a 

Flow of Crab Creek at Neppel a 

Loss between Adrian and Neppel, chiefly by percolation 

into the glacial-outwash deposits 

Flow of Rocky Ford Creek representing ground water that re- 
turns to the surface north of Moses Lake 



Evaporation from Moses Lake . 
Precipitation on Moses Lake . . 



Net loss from Moses Lake by excess of evaporation over 

precipitation 

Surface outflow from Moses Lake 

Increase in lake storage 



Discharge from Drumheller Springs 

Discharge from springs above Drumheller Springs . 
Evaporation from ponds in the sand-dune area c . . 



Total ground-water discharge south of Moses Lake, exclu- 
sive of evaporation and transpiration from swampy areas. 



Acre-feet. 
27, 800 
19, 000 



Acre-feet. 

10,900 

5,000 



8,800 
50,000 



24,200 
3,790 



20,410 

26, 000 

8,510 



13,430 
2,800 
9,200 



25, 430 



Acre-feet. 

3,760 





Acre-feet. 



5,900 
35, 100 



3,760 
38,500 



26, 400 
3,120 



27, 800 
4,000 



23,280 



12.000 



23,800 


10,970 



12,090 
3,090 
9,200 



b 12, 000 
1,740 
9,200 



24,380 



22, 940 



34,700 



42,000 



30,200 
3,780 



26,420 
22, 700 

17,740 



6 12,000 
2,300 
9,200 



23,500 



a Stream-flow records incomplete. 
b Estimate based on run-off for previous years. 

c Estimates based on assumption that the open-water surface of the ponds aggregate 2,000 acres and that 
the average annual evaporation is equivalent to a depth of water of 4.6 feet, the same as for Moses Lake. 



GROUND WATEE IN" QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 155 

In the northern section of the Moses Lake region the ground-water 
discharge is represented by the flow of Rocky Ford Creek, the evapo- 
ration in the swampy tracts north of the lake, and the seepage into 
the lake. In the southern section it is represented by the flow of 
Drumheller and other springs and the evaporation from the ponds 
and swampy tracts south of the lake. Some of the ground water 
discharged from the northern section no doubt passes underground 
a second time and is again returned to the surface in the area south 
of the lake. (See fig. 7, p. 153.) The total discharge amounts to some 
tens of thousands of acre-feet a year. Not all this water can be re- 
covered for irrigation, for much is lost by evaporation from the sur- 
face of Moses Lake or becomes unavailable by passing into the lake 
at its north end and discharging at the south end into the sand-dune 
area, where it can not be used for irrigation. If it were not for the 
existence of Moses Lake the loss from the underground reservoir 
would be much less and the available supply would be much greater. 

The supply is, however, certainly adequate for much more irriga- 
tion than is at present practiced. In view of the large contributory 
area and the excellent intake facilities afforded by the deposits of 
sand and gravel it is not probable that the demands for irrigation in 
the Moses Lake region will exceed the supply. It is believed that the 
above data show that an additional 5,000 acres can be irrigated in 
this region. 

QUALITY OF WATER. 

Analyses of samples of 13 ground waters and 6 surface waters, 
which were made in order to determine the quality of water in this 
basin, will be published in a later report. In general, these analyses 
indicate a very favorable condition of the ground waters. The waters 
represented by 11 of the samples are classed as good and 2 as fair 
for irrigation. Most of them are calcium-carbonate in character, 
only 1 containing in predominating amounts sodium and carbonate, 
the constituents of black alkali. Even this water, however, is good 
for irrigation and would not damage even the most sensitive crops, 
unless used in a grossly careless manner. Most of the waters are 
good or fair for domestic use, but two have been classed as bad, one 
bceause of its high mineral content, especially of calcium and mag- 
nesium, which cause hardness and excessive consumption of soap in 
washing, and the other because of its high content of bicarbonate. 

The surface waters analyzed vary more widely in their value for 
irrigation and domestic use. Two samples from different points in 
Moses Lake show this water to be sodium-carbonate in character but 
sufficiently low in these and other mineral constituents to be entirely 
satisfactory for irrigation and for domestic use. 

The water from a pothole in the NW. i sec. 22, T. 19 N., R. 25 E., 
was found to be fair only for domestic use and for irrigation. Soap 



156 CONTKIBUTIONS TO HYDROLOGY OF UNITED STATES, 1917. 

Lake, Grimes Lake, and a lake in Grand Coulee, 5 miles above Coulee 
City, all furnish water which is too highly mineralized to be useful 
as domestic supplies. The waters from Soap and Grimes lakes are 
classed as bad for irrigation and could not be economically used for 
this purpose. The water from the lake in Grand Coulee might be 
used in irrigating some of the crops less sensitive to alkali if liberal 
quantities of land plaster were applied to the land, but even then such 
special precautions as artificial drainage or washing down the alkali 
by flooding ^ would probably be necessary to insure success. 

PUMPING PLANTS AND IRRIGATION. 

PUMPING FROM WELLS. 

Most of the water used for irrigation in Quincy Valley is pumped 
from wells, but a part is pumped from Moses Lake. 

Power for pumj^ing is supplied by internal-combustion engines 
burning distillate or crude oil. The power plants range in size from 
5 to 80 horsepower, but 15 to 30 horsepower is the size of most plants 
designed primarily for irrigation. The pumps are either centrifugal 
or reciprocating, the type selected depending on the lift. The lifts 
range from 10 to 300 feet, and the yields from 25 to 1,000 gallons per 
minute. Centrifugal pumps (ordinary centrifugal or turbine) are 
generally used for lifts of less than 100 feet; for the greater lifts 
reciprocating (plunger or piston) pumps are used. 

In 1916 wells were used to irrigate approximately 2,800 acres in 
the basin, exclusive of lands in the vicinity of Ephrata and of Soap 
Lake — ^2,300 acres being in orchard, mostly apples, and 500 acres in 
alfalfa and miscellaneous crops. In the Ephrata and Soap Lake 
regions perhaps 500 acres additional were irrigated from wells, 
making a total of 3,300 acres for the whole basin. Several factors, 
among which may be mentioned character of soil, accessibility of 
water supply, and nearness to transportation lines, have restricted 
irrigation to certain fairly well defined districts. Thus the Quincy 
and Winchester districts were selected for development chiefly be- 
cause of the good quality of the soil and nearness to the railroad; 
Hiawatha Valley and the Moses Lake region because water could be 
obtained near the surface. All attempts to irrigate large tracts in 
the south-central and southern parts of the basin by pumping have 
resulted in failure because the soil is so porous and absorbs the water 
so rapidly that the land can not be covered by the ordinary irrigat- 
ing stream. 

1 See Dole, R. B., Ground water in San Joaquin Valley, Cal. : U. S. Geol. Survey Water- 
Supply Paper 398, pp. 58-61, 1916. 



GROUND WATER IN QUINCY VALLEY, WASH. 157 

PUMPING PROM MOSES LAKE. 

In 1916 approximately 700 acres were irrigated by pumping from 
Moses Lake. The Grant Kealty Co. has six pumping plants that 
draw from the lake, four of which were in operation in 1916. The 
plants range in size from 11 to 90 horsepower and are designed for 
capacities of 1,400 to 2,600 gallons per minute with heads of 45 to 95 
feet. 

COST OF PUMPING. 

In calculating the cost of pumping, not only the actual expenses 
of operation should be considered but also all fixed charges, such 
as interest on the investment, depreciation, taxes, and repairs. An- 
nual charges for depreciation and repairs on the average plant will 
range from 12 to 15 per cent of the cost of the equipment and interest 
and taxes from 7 to 9 per cent. 

The cost of fuel is probably the largest item of the operating ex- 
pense. With distillate costing 14 cents a gallon, the expense for 
fuel at 30 plants in Quincy Valley in 1916, as reported by the owners, 
ranged from $1.50 to $18 per acre-foot of water pumped. The aver- 
age cost was about $2 for an acre- foot of water lifted 50 feet. At 
a few plants a lower grade of distillate, known as " stove oil " or 
" stove distillate," costing about 6 cents a gallon, was used and the 
cost of pumping at these plants was materially less. The principal 
reason given for using the more expensive fuel is that the use of 
the cheaper fuel necessitates a special carbureter for the engine, 
but as the carbureter can be purchased at a comparatively small 
expense it seems poor economy to avoid an immediate outlay by 
continuously meeting a fuel bill that is higher than necessary. 

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS. 

Water for irrigation can be obtained in Quincy Valley only by 
pumping. In 1916 lands aggregating about 3,300 acres were irri- 
gated by pumping from wells and about 700 acres by pumping from 
Moses Lake. 

Power for pumping is supplied entirely by internal-combustion 
engines. Because of the high cost of fuel the cost of water for irri- 
gation is high, especially throughout the central and western parts 
of the basin, where water must be lifted from great depths. 

On the basis of the acreage now under irrigation and the probable 
annual contributions of water to the basalt, lake beds, and glacial- 
outwash deposits and to Moses Lake, it is estimated that a total of 
as much as 15,000 acres can be irrigated in the basin each year from 
these sources, the most dependable of which are the glacial- out wash 
deposits and Moses Lake. Irrigation projects planned to serve more 
than 15,000 acres are not justified by the facts at present available. 



INDEX. 



Acknowledgments for aid 4, 95, 134 

Adrian Sink, Wash., movement of water to 

and from 153 

Agricultm'e, Department of, cooperation by.. 38 

Agriculture in Quincy Valley, Wash 139-140 

in Reese River basin, Nev — 122 

in San Simon Valley, Ariz.-N. Mex 29-35 

Alfalfa, water needed for 66 

Alluvial fans, occurrence of, in Reese River 

basin, Nev 98 

Alluvial slopes near mouth of Big Creek, Nev., 

plate showing 102 

Analyses of ground waters 17, 21, 54-55 

Antelope Spring, Nev., spring southwest of, 

plate showing 104 

Arikaree formation, nature and occurrence of. 41 

water in 61-62 

Arizona Agricultural Experiment Station, 

cooperation by 3 

Artesia Valley, Ariz., flowing wells in 26-27 

Augusta Mountains, Nev., rocks composing . 100 

Austin, Nev., Big Creek near 108 

industries of 96 

precipitation at 102-103 

water supply of 118 

Averill, J, D., acknowledgment to 4 

Basalt, water in, in Quincy Valley, Wash . . 147-150 
Battle Mountain, Nev., industries of 97 

precipitation at 102, 103-104 

Rock Creek near 109 

water supplies in 118, 119 

Bell's ditch, discharge of 110 

Berlin, Nev., Reese River near 107 

Big Creek near Austin, Nev 108 

Boone Creek, Nev., discharge of 110 

valley of, plate showing 104 

Bowie, Ariz., precipitation at 10 

Bowie area, Ariz,, ground water in 11-18 

map of, showing locations of wells 14 

Brule clay, nature and distribution of, in 

Lodgepole Creek valley 40-41 

water in 47, 62-63 

Buffalo Valley, Nev. , Pleistocene lake in 100 

Bushnell, Nebr., pumping plant near 65-66 

wells at and near 57, 58 

Chadron sandstone, stratigraphic place of 40 

water in, in Lodgepole Valley, Wyo. and 

Nebr 63 

Chappell, Nebr., wells at, yield of 60-61 

Cheyenne County, Nebr., wells in, descrip- 
tions of 58-60 

Chriricahua Mountains, Ariz., description of. 4 

Clear Creek, Nev. , discharge of 110 

Cochise Head, Ariz. , altitude of 4 

Columbia River, proposed improvement of. . . 133 



Page. 
Crab Creek, Wash., basin of, movement of 

surface and ground water in . . . 152-154 

description of 136-137 

Cretaceous formations in Lodgepole Valley, 

Wyo.-Nebr., ground water in 63-64 

Darton, N. H., cited 39 

Desatoya Mountains, Nev., rocks composing. 100 
Deuel County, Nebr,, wells in, descriptions of. 60-61 
Diesem, H, C, Cost of pumping for irrigation 

in western Nebraska 67-69 

Dinsmore, S, C, analyses of groundwater by. 54-55 
Dos Cabezas Mountains, Ariz., description of. 4 

Ebsen, G, E., acknowledgment to 4 

Egbert, Wyo,, well at 56 

Equivalents, convenient 92-94 

Fans, alluvial, occurrence of, in Reese River 

basin, Nev 98 

Farming, dry, in San Simon Valley, Ariz ... 33 
Feet per second, conversion of velocity in, 

into velocity in miles per hour. . . 75 

Fish Creek, Nev., discbarge of 110 

Fish Creek Mountains, Nev,, 'rocks composing 100 

Forage, raising of, in dry area 34 

Forbes, R. H,, Agriculture in the San Simon 

Valley 29-35 

Forsling, Gus., pumping plant of 65-66 

Fox Hills sandstone, ground water in, in 

Lodgepole Valley, Wyo.-Nebr... 63-64 

Gallons per minute, conversion of discharge 

in, into discharge in second-feet . . 74 

Garland, J. B., acknowledgment to 4 

Grain, raising of, in a dry area 34 

Grand Coulee, Wash., quality of lake water in 156 

Great Plains, escarpments in 38-39 

Grimes Lake, Wash., quality of water in. . . . 156 

Ground water, analyses of 17, 21, 54-55 

quality of 16-18, 20 

temperature of ■ 18 

waste of 16, 27 

Havallah Range, Nev., rocks composing. . . 100, 101 

Henshaw, F. F., acknowledgment to 134 

Hibler, J, H,, acknowledgment to 4 

Hill, J. L., acknowledgment to 4 

Humboldt River, Nev., flow of 109, 110 

Humboldt River basin, Nev., artesian con- 
ditions in 112-114 

irrigation in 119-122 

reconnaissance map of parts of 98 

springs in, data on 122-129 

wells in, construction of 119-122 

data on 122-129 

See also Reese River basin. 
Hydraulic conversion tables and convenient 

equivalents 71-94 

159 



160 



INDEX. 



Page. 

Illinois Creek, Reese River above 105-107 

Indian Valley, Nev., origin of 97 

plate showing 102 

Irrigation in Lodgepole Valley, Wyo.-Nebr . . 51- 

52,64-67 

in Quiney Valley, Wash 131-133, 156-107 

in Reese River basin, Nev 119-122 

in San Simon Valley, Ariz.-N. Mex. . . 27, 31-32. 

Julesburg, Colo., wells at, yield of 61 

Kimball County, Nebr., wells in 57-58 

Lake beds in Quiney Valley, Wash., water 

in 151 

in Reese River basin, Nev., nature of 101 

in San Simon Valley, Ariz.-N. Mex., 

nature of 8-9 

Laramie Coimty, Wyo., wells in, descriptions 

of 56-57 

Lavas, Tertiary, in Reese and Humboldt 

river basins, Nev 101 

Lodgepole, Nebr., wells at, yield of 59-60 

Lodgepole Creek, AVyo.-Nebr., course of 37 

flow measurements of 43-46 

irrigation from 51-52 

terraces on 38 

Lodgepole Creek valley, Wyo.-Nebr., de- 
scription of 37-38 

geology of 39-42 

ground water in, quality of 52-55 

source and disposal of. 50-52 

irrigation in 64-67 

map of 40, 64, 66 

physiography of 38-39 

precipitation in 42-43 

surface waters of 43-46 

water in gravels of 47 

water in Tertiary formations in 61-63 

water table in 47-50 

McCrory, J. S., acknowledgment to 4 

Map scales, miles to 1 inch by 94 

Meinzer, Oscar E., Ground water for irriga- 
tion in Lodgepole Valley, Wyo. 

^ andNebr 37-67 

Schweimesen, A. T., and, Ground water 

in Quiney Valley, Wash. 131-157 

Mill Creek, discharge of 110 

Moore, P. W., analyses by 17, 21 

Moore's Spur area, Ariz., ground water in. . . 19 

Moses Lake, Wash., description of 136 

movement of surface and ground water 

near 152-155 

water for irrigation pumped from 157 

Muddy Creek, flow of 44 

Mullerleile, Louis, acknowledgment to 134 

Neill, Ernest L., field work by 95 

Nevada, ground water resources of 95 

map of, sho\<^ing areas covered by ground- 
water papers 96 

Ogalalla formation, nature and occurrence of, 

in the Lodgepole Creek valley — 41-42 
water in 61 



Page. 

Paradise, Ariz., precipitation at 10, 11 

Peloncillo Mountains, description of 4, 5, 6 

Pierce, A. G., acknowledgment to 4 

Pierre shale, ground water in, in Lodgepole 

Valley, Wyo., Nebr 63,64 

Ptaaleno Mountains, Ariz., description of 4, 5 

Pinebluflf, Wyo., wells at and near 56-57 

Playas, occurrence of, in the Reese River 

basin 98-99 

Potter, Nebr., wells at, yield of 58 

Poultry raising in San Simon Valley, Ariz.- 

N. Mex 35 

Pumping for irrigation, cost of 67-69, 157 

plants for 65-67 

Quiney Valley, Wash. , climate of 138-139 

field work in 134 

geologic section across, plate shovmig 140 

geology of 141-145 

glacial outwash in, nature and origin of. . . 144 

water in 151-155 

irrigation in 131-133, 156-157 

lake beds in , 143-144 

location of 131 

soil and vegetation in 139-140 

water in, quality of 155-156 

water-bearing formations in 147-155 

water table in 145-146 

wind-blovm deposits in 145 

Quiney Valley, Wash., and adjacent areas, 

map of 134 

topography of 134-138 

Reese River above Illinois Creek 105-107 

chief tributaries of 108 

excavation by 100 

flow of 104-105,107 

Reese River basin, Nev., artesian conditions 

in 112-114 

field work in 95 

geography of 96-97 

geology of 99-102 

groxmd water in, quality of 114-118 

quantity of 112 

source and discharge of 110-111 

irrigation in 119-122 

physiography of 97-99 

reconnaissance map of 98 

springs In, data on 122-129 

water supplies utilized in 118-119 

water table in 111-112 

wells in, construction of 119-121 

wells in, data on 122-129 

Reese River canyon, Nev., head of, plate 

showing ^ 106 

Reese River valley, Nev., low bluffs along, 

plate showing 100 

view looking westward across, plate 

showing 100 

view from James Litster's ranch, plate 

showing 106 

Rock Creek near Battle Mountain, Nev. 109 

near its canyon 110 

Rocky^ Ford Creek, Wash., movement of 

water to and from 153-154 

Rodeo, N. Mex., precipitation at 10, 11 



INDEX. 



161 



Page. 
Rodeo area, N. Mex.-Ariz., ground water in . . 18-21 
map of, showing locations of wells and 

springs 20 

Roundtree, James, acknowledgment to 4 

Run-off in millions of gallons, conversion of, 

into run-off in acre-feet 74 

Run-off in millions of gallons per day, con- 
version of, into discharge in second-feet . 73 

San Simon, Ariz., precipitation at 10 

San Simon area, Ariz., ground water in 11-18 

map of, showing location of wells 14 

San Simon Cienaga, Ariz.-N. Mex., descrip- 
tion of 6,12,18 

San Simon Creek, description of . . .'. ^ 5, 6 

San Simon Valley, Ariz.-N. Mex., agricul- 
ture in 29-35 

artesian water in 2-3, 12-18 

cattle raising in 1-3, 34-35 

geology of 6-9 

location of * 1 

map of 4 

physiography of 4-6 

precipitation in 9-11 

scope of report on^ 3 

soils of 30 

summary of ground- water data on 27-28 

vegetatfon in 30-31 

wells in, records of 22-26 

San Jose, Ariz., settlement of 29 

Schwennesen, A. T., Ground water ta San 

Simon Valley, Ariz, and N. Mex . . 1-28 
and Meiazer, O. E., Ground water in 

Quincy Valley, Wash 131-157 

Second-feet, conversion of discharge in, into 

rrm-off in acre-feet 72 

conversion of discharge in, into run-off in 

acre-feet for a year of 365 days .. . 74 
into run-off in acre-feet per month of 

28days 84-85 

per month of 29 days 86-87 

per month of 30 days 88-89 

per month of 31 days 90-91 

into run-off in millions of cubic feet. . 73 

into run-off in millions of gallons 73 

into theoretical horsepower per foot 

of fall 92 

Second-feet per square mile, conversion of 
discharge in, into run-off in 

depth in inches 72 

conversion of discharge in, into run-off 
in depth in inches per month of 28 
days 76-77 



Page. 
Second-feet per square mile, conversion of 
discharge in, into rvm-off in 
depth in inches per month of 29 

days..: 78-79 

into run-off in depth in inches per 

month of30 days 80-81 

per month of 31 days 82-83 

per year of 365 days 75 

Shoshone Range, Nev., description of 97-98 

rocks composing >. . . 100, 101 

Sidney, Nebr., wells at and near, yield of. . 58-59, 60 

Siebenthal, C.E., cited 39 

Silver Creek, Nev., discharge of 110 

Soap Lake, Wash., quality of water in 155-156 

Spring Creek, Wyo., flow of 44 

Springs, occurrence of, in San Simon Valley, 

Ariz.-N. Mex 19 

Stewart Creek, Nev., discharge of 110 

Stock raising in San Simon Valley, Ariz.- 

N. Mex 1-3,34-35 

Stream deposits in San Simon Valley, nature 

of 8,9 

Sumrell, Frank, acknowledgment to 4 

Terms, definition of 71 

Toyabe Range, Nev., description of 97 

rocks composing 100, 101 

Truckee group, occurrence of 101 

U. S. Weather Bureau, cited 9, 10, 42-43 

Vegetables, growing of, in a dry area 34 

Velocity in feet per second, conversion of, 

into velocity in miles per hour ... 75 
Vinson, A. E., analyses by 17, 21 

Waring, Gerald A., Groimd water in Reese 
River basin and adjacent parts 
of Humboldt River basin,Nev . . 95-129 

Washburn, E. A., acknowledgment to 4 

Wells, artesian, in San Simon Valley, Ariz.- 

N. Mex., yield of 12, 14-15, 26 

construction of 15-16, 26 

in Lodgepole Creek valley, Wyo.-Nebr., 

yield of 56-61 

in San Simon Valley, Ariz.-N. Mex., loss 

of head in 14, 15 

maps showing locations of 4, 14, 20 

records of 22-26 

Wharton, Gordon, acknowledgment to 4 

Wind-blown deposits in Quincy Valley, Wash 145 

Yakima basalt, nature of 142-143 



O 



y 



DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Franklin K. Lane, Secretary 



United States Geological Survey 

George Otis Smith, Director 



Water-Supply Paper 425 



CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HYDROLOGY 
OF THE UNITED STATES 

fl 

1917 



NATHAN C. GROVER, Chief Hydraulic Engineer 




WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 
1918 



NOTE. — The papers included in the annual volume " Contributions to the 
hydrology of the United States '* are issued separately, with the final pagi- 
nation, as soon as they are ready. The last paper will include a volume 
index, title-page, and table of contents for the use of those who may wish 
to bind the separate parts. A small edition of the bound volume will also 
be issued, but copies can not be supplied to those who have received all 
the parts. 
li 



CONTENTS. 



[The letters in parentheses preceding the titles are those used to designate the papers 

for advance publication.] 

' Page. 

(A) Ground water in San Simon Valley, Arizona and New Mexico, by 

A. T. Schwennesen, with a section on agriculture by R. H. Forbes 
(published May 7, 1917) 1 

(B) Ground water for irrigation in Lodgepole Valley, Wyoming and 

Nebraska, by O. E. Meiner (published Sept. 14, 1917) 37 

(C) Hydraulic conversion tables and convenient equivalents (published 

Oct. 31, 1917) 71 

(D) Ground water in Reese River basin and adjacent parts of Hum- 

boldt River basin, by G. A. Waring (published December 26, 

1918 ) 95 

(E) Ground water in Quincy Valley, Wash., by A. T. Schwennesen and 

O. E. Meiner (published December 80, 1918) 131 

Index 159 



ILLUSTEATIONS. 



Page. 
Plate I. Map of San Simon basin, Ariz.-N. Mex., showing areas of flow- 
ing wells and areas in which depth to water table of upper 

ground-water horizon is less than 100 feet 4 

II. Map of San Simon and Bowie areas, San Simon Valley, Ariz.,- 
N. Mex., showing locations of deep wells, flowing-well areas, 

and lands irrigated with well waters 14 

III. Map of Rodeo area, San Simon Valley, Ariz,-N. Mex., showing 
locations of wells and springs and depths to ground-water 

table : 20 

IV. Map of Lodgepole Valley in Laramie County, Wyo., showing 

geology and ground-water conditions 40 

V. Map of Lodgepole Valley in Kimball and Cheyenne counties, 

Nebr., showing ground-water conditions 64 

VI. Map of Lodgepole Valley in Deuel County, Nebr,, showing 

ground-water conditions 66 

VII. Map of Nevada showing areas covered by papers of the United 

States Geological Survey relating to ground water 96 

VIII. Reconnaissance map of Reese River basin and .adjacent parts 
of Humboldt River basin, Nev., showing geology and water 

resources 98 

IX. A, View looking westA^ard across Reese River valley, Nev., 
from slopes back of Austin ; B, Low bluffs along Reese River 

valley, Nev., near mouth of Boone Creek 100 

X. A, Alluvial slopes near mouth* of Big Creek, Nev., looking 
southeastward ; B, Indian Valley, Nev., looking northward 
from its head™. ^-, 102 



IV CONTENTS. 

Page. 
Plate XI. A, Valley of Boone Creek, Nev., looking downstream from 
Mrs. Litster's ranch ; B, Spring IJ miles southwest of Ante- 
lope Spring, in Antelope Valley, Nev 104 

XII. A, Head of Reese River canyon, Nev., showing Tertiary lake 
beds on each side; B, Reese River valley, Nev., looking 
downstream from James Litster's ranch 106 

XIII. Map of Quincy Valley, Wash., and adjacent areas, showing con- 

tours of the water table and areas contributing water to the 

valley 134 

XIV. Geologic section across Quincy Valley, Wash 140 

FiGUKE 1. Map showing location of San Simon Valley, Ariz.-N. Mex 2 

2. Generalized columnar section of San Simon Valley, Ariz.- 

N. Mex 7 

3. Map showing the drainage basin of Lodgepole Creek and 

adjacent areas in Wyoming and Nebraska 37 

4. Diagram showing annual precipitation at Austin and Battle 

Mountain, Nev 102 

5. Map of Washington showing location of Quincy Valley and 

other areas described in water-supply papers of the United 
States Geological Survey relating to ground water 132 

6. Generalized columnar section of geologic formations in Quincy 

Valley, Wash 141 

7. Diagram showing movements and disposal of surface and 

ground water in the Moses Lake region of Quincy Valley, 
Wash__" 153 



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